Open AccessFactors associated with vaginal yeast infections in HIV-positive women
Author(s) -
Ann B. Williams,
Susan Andrews,
Karen T. Tashima,
JoAnne Mezger,
Chang Yu
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
the journal of the association of nurses in aids care/journal of the association of nurses in aids care
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.636
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1552-6917
pISSN - 1055-3290
DOI - 10.1016/s1055-3290(98)80032-0
Subject(s) - medicine , asymptomatic , logistic regression , confidence interval , vaginitis , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , vagina , obstetrics , odds ratio , gynecology , immunology , surgery
To better understand factors associated with symptomatic and asymptomatic vulvovaginal candidiasis, including the role of immune compromise and patient self-report, a cross-sectional analysis of factors associated with the isolation of yeast from vaginal swabs and clinical diagnosis of Candida vaginitis (CV) among 184 HIV-infected women was conducted. Sixty-four (35%) of the women had vaginal swabs positive for yeast. Nineteen (10%) women met the case definition for CV. In a logistic regression model, only CD4 < or = 100 cells/mm3 was predictive of CV (adds ratio = 4.5; 95% confidence interval = 1.0, 20; p = .05). The predictive value of patient self-report of CV was only 12%. This study demonstrates that all HIV-infected women should receive a regular and thorough gynecologic evaluation, regardless of self-reported symptoms. HIV-infected women will benefit from education about prevention and treatment of CV, and women whose CD4 counts are low may wish to consider prophylaxis for CV.